Alvaric remained still in the same spot. He scratched his head repeatedly, unable to understand what was happening. The massive star-beasts showed no hostility toward Lyrith.
In fact, Lyrith was now climbing onto the back of a large wolf. She reached up, picking a huge, delicious-looking fruit.
After she managed to get it, she came back down and held out her hand toward Alvaric.
"Do you want this? It's tasty," she said innocently.
Alvaric nodded. He took it and began to eat. The fruit resembled an apple, but it was as big as a head.
Just one was enough to make his stomach full.
Alvaric stayed where he was, watching Lyrith feed the giant beasts again. She gently stroked their heads one by one. Alvaric smiled slightly.
Lyrith turned toward him. "Do you want to try?"
Without much thought, he shook his head. "Sorry, maybe not this time."
Lyrith walked up to Alvaric and pulled his hand. He had already refused, but the demon girl forced him to come along.
As he got closer to the giant beasts, their gazes turned hostile. Some even looked ready to strike, but as soon as Lyrith stared back at them, they all submitted.
"I already told you, he's my friend. You have to behave," Lyrith scolded.
They nodded as if they understood. Lyrith handed Alvaric some dried meat and fruit. She moved her head, signaling him to feed the monsters.
Of course, that sounded ridiculous to Alvaric. He had killed some of them and even used their meat for food.
"No. It's impossible they'll accept this," Alvaric complained.
"Just try."
Alvaric reached out his hand, looking the other way. The food in his hand was instantly eaten by one of the massive beasts, but… blood dripped from Alvaric's arm.
His hand had been bitten off. He immediately stepped back and prepared to fight.
"You all…" A terrifying aura radiated from Lyrith's body.
The giant beasts instantly bowed. The hand that had been swallowed was spat back out.
Lyrith gave Alvaric a signal—he had to try again.
***
"This time, trust me."
Alvaric wanted to say, 'I trusted you last time and my hand got bitten off,' but he didn't voice it. He stepped forward and offered his left hand.
This time, he closed his eyes. No pain came. It felt like something was licking his hand. Alvaric opened his eyes and, sure enough, the food was gone—and his hand was intact.
He was amazed. Such terrifying creatures could be this tame?
He looked at Lyrith. "Why are they so tame with you?" Alvaric asked, full of curiosity.
Lyrith tilted her head as if thinking, then shook it.
"I don't know."
An absurd answer. Alvaric felt Lyrith was lying, but from her eyes... it was hard to believe she was. Her gaze was so pure and innocent.
In the end, Alvaric could only speculate. He looked back and forth between the star-beasts and Lyrith. They seemed so close.
Alvaric scratched his head. "Isn't this weird?"
He truly didn't understand why the giant beasts could be so gentle with Lyrith.
That day, Lyrith and Alvaric cooked. They used the meat Alvaric had stored. Of course, he wouldn't hunt those giant beasts again.
He'd get scolded by Lyrith. They had become quite close.
But what shocked him was Lyrith suddenly shouting from near the exit. She waved her hand at Alvaric.
When Alvaric looked over, he was stunned. Behind Lyrith was a large beast with blood spilling from its neck.
"You... killed that one?"
Lyrith nodded. "Yeah. Didn't you say we needed meat to eat?" she replied innocently.
Alvaric walked toward Lyrith. The closer he got, the more clearly he saw the creature. It was the gray-furred wolf Lyrith had been riding before.
Alvaric looked at Lyrith. She showed no guilt at all. It was truly strange to him.
"Why did you kill it?" Alvaric asked again.
"You said we needed meat to eat, so I killed it."
Another guiltless answer. Alvaric looked over at the other giant beasts. They still acted friendly, not showing any signs of anger over the death of one of their own.
Even when Lyrith reached out her hand, they still bowed gently.
"You don't feel guilty for killing them?"
Lyrith tilted her head, not really understanding why Alvaric was asking such a thing.
"I told them we needed meat to eat. They offered themselves as food," she said again, without the slightest guilt. "Since there's only the three of us, I picked just one of them. Isn't that enough?"
Alvaric immediately shook his head. "No. This is more than enough."
He looked back and forth between Lyrith and the giant beasts again. He shook his head, still unable to comprehend the situation.
"Whatever. At this point, I have no choice but to accept it," said Alvaric.
He began skinning the gray wolf, removing the inedible parts and cutting the meat into smaller portions.
Some he prepared for their meal that day. The rest he stored inside his item box. Then he started cooking the selected meat.
In just one hour, everything was ready. The roasted meat was done.
"Take it!"
Lyrith nodded, grabbing some without hesitation. She ate the cooked meat eagerly. Alvaric did the same.
He enjoyed the meal. "You never told me you could use fire magic. If I'd known, I wouldn't have eaten raw meat before," Alvaric complained.
He enjoyed the food this time. He turned toward Niva, who was still unconscious. Then he looked at Lyrith again.
"Again?" Alvaric muttered.
"Where is this? Who are you?" Lyrith asked.
Alvaric let out a quiet sigh. This was happening too often. He had to explain everything from the beginning again. In a single day, Lyrith could lose her memory two to three times.
There was no exact schedule. Sometimes she forgot an hour after being told. Sometimes ten or fourteen hours would pass before she lost it again.
Alvaric had to be patient and explain it all from the beginning—again.
***
After finishing the explanation, Lyrith resumed eating. She seemed to understand what was going on. One thing that felt strange to Alvaric was, why didn't Lyrith ever question his explanation?
That was something he still didn't understand. When asked directly, Lyrith couldn't answer.
In the end, once again, Alvaric could only speculate.
"Who exactly is this demon girl in front of me?" he muttered quietly.
He stared at Lyrith for a long time. No matter how long he looked, the answer never came. In the end, it remained a mystery to Alvaric.
"I have to find out."